Welcome to the Captain's Blog. These are my highlights of being principal of MAST Academy, Miami-Dade County Public School's Maritime and Science Technology High School. I welcome any questions or feedback from parents, students, and visitors. Please post your comments and questions using the comments link at the bottom of each post. I look forward hearing from and beginning conversations with the entire MAST family, past, present, and future.

MAST Mission Statement

MAST Academy provides a marine setting and a nurturing environment for studies leading to academic success, career preparation, an appreciation of the sea, and environmental awareness. Stakeholders work together to instill a commitment to life-long learning and to advance and improve a challenging curriculum integrated with sciences and technology.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Despite a very active few weeks in the Atlantic, we have managed to keep our voyage out at sea and sailing along nicely. We have had a very busy few weeks. We received word that Mr. Tohulka has been chosen to be the first "Teacher Under the Sea" with the Aquarius Project. He will have the opportunity to spent eight days living alongside scientists in an underwater habitat. Mr. Tohulka will have the opportunity to link back with students at MAST through blogs, email, and live streaming video.

The MAST Makos started off the year strong with both swimming teams and the girls' volleyball teams recording wins during the opening week of the season. The boys' and girls' swimming teams teams defeated Sunset at the Shark Tank. The Lady Makos lost a tough opening match to Ransom but came back to avenge the loss by defeating West Hialeah High.

On a more somber note, Mr. Stephens was reassigned and left our MAST family late last week. We will all miss him very much but we wish him the best on his new shores.

As a reminder, Back to School Night is quickly approaching. Our ship will come to port for parents and families to visit on Tuesday, September 23. Please be on the look out for more information and details in the coming week. We hope to see all families there!

MAST ePublications via Yudu

Captain's Book Shelf

Interesting Quotes

At first people refuse to believe that a strange new thing can be done, then they begin to hope it can be done, then they see it can be done-then it is done and all the world wonders why it was not done centuries ago.

- F. H. Burnett, 1911, The Secret Garden.

Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly becuse we have virtue or excellence, but rather we have those because we have acted rightly.

- Aristotle

We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.